IT Faces and Voices

Anthony Smith

Mentor on a Motorcycle

“The greatest reward is providing mentoring and guidance to the students who work for us. It allows me to have an impact not only on today; but also tomorrow.”

Anthony Smith, Customer Support Analyst

Network and Classroom Services

Anthony Smith spent much of his professional IT career in New
Jersey and South Carolina before returning to Western New York and
taking a position as Help Desk Consultant at UB. Anthony was
attracted to the position for the challenges and opportunity for
growth the job offered.

One of Anthony's primary responsibilities is the day to day
supervision of the CIT Help Desk. The Help Desk assists students,
faculty and staff from a variety of departments. CIT at UB has
grown substantially since Smith joined. Changes at CIT mean new
challenges for Anthony as the Help Desk now covers problems with
UBIT accounts, network incidents, classroom equipment and
collaborative learning spaces.

Anthony's daily tasks are “interrupt driven” and
often involve responding to a customer’s needs if the student
consultant is unable to help them. Anthony and other consultants
also challenge themselves to solve customer problems outside their
area of support. Working with the CIT Help Desk gives Anthony the
satisfaction of helping others with their immediate technology
needs.

Anthony works to create a supportive environment for Help Desk
student consultants, who often stay in the position for multiple
years. He forms a close relationship with the students, helping
them to grow both inside and outside of their position as young
employees. For Anthony, offering mentorship and guidance to student
employees is the "greatest reward," allowing him "to have an impact
not only on today, but also tomorrow."

Working with students also keeps Anthony connected to current
events and is a reciprocal learning process. Helping students,
particularly during back to school events, gives Anthony and the
student consultants a chance to see firsthand the results of their
efforts.

When Anthony is not at the office, he dedicates his life to his
family. He and his wife participate in sports activities with their
two young sons and sledding or snowmobile riding in the winter. He
also enjoys tinkering in the garage and riding his motorcycle when
the weather cooperates.